Fernando Torres has told Liverpool to sit down and negotiate with Chelsea, having reached the point at which he believes that a departure from Anfield is now the right move for his career. With four days of the winter transfer window remaining the striker is aware that time is running out but he does not want to miss out on the opportunity to join Chelsea for a second time. He has urged the Fenway Sports Group to broker an agreement that is good for both player and club. There is not, however, a clause that will allow Torres to unilaterally break his contract in this transfer window.

Chelsea made a bid for Torres during the summer but the striker was told that he would not be able to depart with the club undergoing a sales process. The price quoted for his transfer was so high as to be simply a symbolic "not for sale" sign. At the time, Torres sought assurances that he would be able to depart in the future, should an acceptable bid be made and he consider a move necessary. Those discussions were held with the then managing director Christian Purslow who has now left the club – and no written legal clause was signed.

Torres also wanted assurances over the future of the club when Liverpool were taken over by the new owners. Torres's camp believes that promises have been broken. Liverpool are not the club that Torres joined and the striker is pessimistic over the future and his patience has worn thin with the absence of investment or activity since the takeover. Roy Hodgson's departure and the appointment of Kenny Dalglish was a step in the right direction but is not enough. Liverpool have only made one significant move in the transfer window, for the Uruguay striker Luis Suárez.

It is now a case of Liverpool convincing Torres not to go. The striker can see little real argument to continue at Anfield. Although there is no plan to force a move through and despite the recognition that Liverpool could block the move, Torres believes that an immediate departure is the best solution. Liverpool's decision to announce the bid could be interpreted as an attempt to flush Torres out and force him to push for an exit.

If he were to join Chelsea, Torres would be eligible to play in the Champions League. He is hopeful of Liverpool recognising that his departure could be good for all concerned. Liverpool signed Torres for £23m; they could make more than £20m in profit if they were to sell now. Indeed, it is the money from a Torres deal that could unlock the funds necessary to make an improved bid to clinch Suárez.

Liverpool have reopened talks with Ajax over Suárez this afternoon and, it is believed, made a breakthrough over a transfer fee for the Uruguay international. Ajax rejected a £12.8m offer from Liverpool for their captain this week and had insisted on €30m (£25.8m) for the deal to happen. Suárez has told the coach, Frank De Boer, that he wishes to leave Amsterdam for Merseyside and, mindful that his value will drop if they fail to qualify for next season's Champions League, Ajax are now understood to be open to a compromise fee with Liverpool.

Meanwhile, Chelsea's manager, Carlo Ancelotti, refused to be drawn on his club's bid for Fernando Torres but said he was happy that "the club are trying to do everything they can to improve the squad". But Ancelotti added: "I don't want to speak about this, you will have to ask the club. He is not my player and I have to have respect for Liverpool. I don't like to speak about this."

Ancelotti had previously intimated that the club's protracted pursuit of the Benfica defender David Luiz would be their only major move of the January transfer window. Asked if the Torres bid had therefore caught him by surprise, he said: "I'm not surprised, because I know very well what the club is doing now. I am happy because the club is doing a fantastic job in this transfer market. The club is trying to do everything to improve the squad."

it's really bizarre how liverpool fans who were saying torres is the best player in the world (let alone striker) now say he's garbage, always injured, blah, blah.. the same torres who claimed that he was a childhood liverpool fan, lfc in his blood, blah, blah... the point is that players are mercenaries who know how to play the fans by making spurious claims.. and the fans pander to the players' inflated egos... take robbie keane who has just added west ham to his list of boyhood clubs - spurs, liverpool, and celtic... the agents are the ones laughing their way to the bank.. anyways, as a chelsea fan, i'm stoked that we now have the best strikeforce in the premiership!

well said,,,
very true what you say there.
liverpool fans talk the most crap i have heard from any fans in england.
they wouldnt shut up about torres being the best striker in the world,,
and now hes left, they say he's no good.
if rooney left united months ago, i would have been gutted and recognized what a loss it would have been.
its the same with torres,,,,
a great addition to any team in the world when he is on form.
united tried to buy him for 3 years before liverpool.
at the moment, im very happy with rooney, berbatov, nani and hernandez for utd, but for sure, torres and drogba (if they click) will be scary.

oh and btw liverppol fans,
the reason why torres left has nothing to do with no heart for the club, its because a world class player cannot stay in a team that isnt going to challenge for the league anytime in his career.
simple as that.

maybe Torres should leave so LFC can win a trophy again because when Torres came LFC never wins anything. haha just kidding. I hope he will stay because we already have drogba anelka and malouda, they are irreplaceable. At least for this season.

I really love drogba and torres playing together. Their enemies would definitely be scared of them. But, I think Torres would not go anywhere because he is a great player and he would respect his contract with LFC